The ‘Chaiwalas’ — as the family came to be respectfully known — have a legacy of growing tea that dates back to the early 1900s.
Fun fact: By 1960, they were producing approximately 10 million kilograms of tea from estates across India!
The estate, which stands on the land, saw decades of continuous cultivation and even survived an earthquake that struck the region in 1905.
Having enjoyed his trips to the estate when he was a child, Deepak Prakash decided to build a home here, which eventually became the homestay.
The structures were built entirely from mud sourced during on-site excavation, along with stone, wood, and slate.
The home’s roofs are inspired by the gaddi tribe homes, which imbibe ingenious leakage management concepts.
Hand-chiselled river stones factor into the construction, and the no-paint mandate is taken seriously.
But it is the woodwork that has the best story to tell. It is made from recycled cedar and pine wood from an old Palampur courthouse that was being demolished during the construction of the cottages.
At The Lodge at Wah, one of the highlights is the tea tour, which is an insider pass into the tea manufacturing process, tea production, withering, rolling, fermenting, drying, and sorting.
Then, head to the tea room for a tea-tasting session where ample varieties of brews are sprawled out for you to try.
Bonfire nights, trekking, paragliding, and visits to the nearby villages will give you a front-row seat to the vignettes of the local life of Himachal.
All the meals prepared at The Lodge at Wah are with produce grown on the land with organic farming practices.